Posts Tagged ‘Things’

10 Things Every Caregiver and Care-receiver Should Ask About Guardianship

by bobcrabtree1 Posted: Saturday, 1/2/2010

If you are a family caregiver or a care-receiver, it is important that you understand your legal rights. Use this article to help start a discussion with your attorney or with the appropriate representative.


1. What is guardianship? Guardianship is a legal process used to insure that a person who is unable to make decisions on their own has someone specifically assigned to make decisions on their behalf.


Usually, as a last resort, a judge decides if the care-receiver is no longer capable of managing his or her life.


A person for whom a guardian is appointed is known as a ward.

2. What are the responsibilities of a guardian? The responsibilities of a guardian may include providing for the care and comfort of the ward.

In addition, the guardian must take care of the ward’s clothing, furniture and automobiles.


A guardian must secure services to help the ward return to self-care as soon as possible.

3. Who can petition the court for appointment of a guardian? A care-receiver on his/her behalf, a family member, or any person interested in the welfare of the prospective ward, can petition the court.

4. What if the care-receiver disapproves of the petition? The care-receiver should consult an attorney immediately.


The court can only appoint a guardian after clear evidence is presented at a hearing that the are-receiver is not capable of making informed decisions about his/her own care.

5. What rights does the care-receiver have when facing a potential guardianship? The care-receiver has the right to object to the guardianship, to the powers of the guardian, and to appointment of a particular person as guardian.


The care-receiver has the right to be present at the hearing, and represented by an attorney. The care-receiver has the right to present evidence on his/her own behalf.


The care-receiver has the right to cross examine all witnesses and to have a jury trial.

6. Do all guardians have the same powers? No. The court will tailor the powers of the guardian to the demonstrated need of the ward.


In some cases the court will allow the ward to control part of his/her property to encourage self-reliance.

7. Can a guardian be replaced? Yes. You or any person interested in the ward’s welfare, can petition the court to remove a guardian and appoint another.

8. How long does a guardianship last? Many times it lasts until death.


But the court must review the guardianship one year after it begins and then every three years.

9. What if the ward feels he/she no longer needs a guardian? The ward should send a letter to the judge of probate court requesting the guardianship be ended.


Or a petition can be filed by the ward or by anyone interested in his/her welfare. In either case, a hearing will be held.

10. How is a conservatorship different from a guardianship? Unlike a guardianship, a conservator cannot make healthcare decisions.


A conservator is a person or corporation appointed by probate court to manage another person’s property and financial affairs.


This differs from a guardian, who is appointed by probate court and makes decisions about the care of another person.


Take the time to talk with an attorney and communicate your intentions. Whether you are the care-receiver or the caregiver, legal planning is important.

Rebecca Colmer is an Eldercare Advocate, Author, Speaker, Publisher, and Caregiver. You can find more caregiving tools and resources at her website:
Caregiving Tools

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Elder Care – Things We Don’t Really Bother To Talk About

by bobcrabtree1 Posted: Monday, 12/28/2009

Ever heard of the phrase “The 200 pound gorilla in the room”? This is a phrase referring to some topic which is at the top of everyone’s mind, but no one talks about it. Everyone knows that the gorilla is here, but no one wants to talk about this and get the gorilla upset.

Whenever you spend time with an elderly person, there is a gorilla in the room. This topic can be perfectly associated with old people, but a topic that not many dare to cross, maybe because they find it rather upsetting, or maybe they just don’t know how to say it. But this is a topic which dominates your elderly parents’ minds practically every single day. The gorilla in the room refers to death and the life-ending matters that are pending in every elderly person’s life.

As your elderly parents’ primary caregiver, you ought to be aware of how much importance this topic is to your parents. In case you have lost a parent, the spouse has greater meaning and awareness of the issue. However, there are some very good reason to avoid talking about life ending issues and impending death with your senior citizen. This is because there are plenty of final issues that must be decided upon before the time arrives. They include

> Do not give any advance document directive decisions to the end of life medical personnel.
> The conditions of the will.
> Any wishes that the elderly person may have about his or her funeral plans.
> A brief review of the insurance and financial documents that the person with the power of attorney or the Will’s executor will resolve.

In order to talk about the end of life issues which are related to death with your elderly parents, you must be emotionally stable to withstand it. Most of us bury these ominous thoughts in a trick and we just like to think that we may not go through this. Perhaps we do that because we are comfortable thinking about life itself, and have a strong feeling of discomfort while discussing afterlife and other religious ideas.

To be mentally prepared to care for your parents and be an effective counsellor to your aging parent, you must ensure that you have enough peace and resolution regarding the topic. If this means you need to confront your anxieties about religion, you must accept it as a part of being an adult because your dependants including your children as well as your aging parents may look up to you for answers related to that area. It may take some courage on your part, but it is important that you face these issues so that you can help you aging parents do the same.

If you have strong faith in religion and if your aging parents share that opinion, it is probably the right time to discuss afterlife assurances that have been dealt with in your religion. Spend time with your aging parents reading texts about the doctrine of heaven and gain comfort from it. This may bring new hope and peace to your parents because they will realize that leaving this world does not imply the end of their life.

Do not allow the 200 pound gorilla continue its stay. Discuss the issue of death and afterlife with your elderly parents, and handle it with kindness and compassion. By doing so, you will assist your parents in attaining spiritual acceptance and mental peace about the rest of their golden age and the time they have left on earth.

Abhishek successfully runs an Old Age Home and he has got some great Eldercare Secrets up his sleeves! Download his FREE 80 Pages Ebook, “How To Take Great Care Of Elders” from his website http://www.Senior-Guides.com/560/index.htm . Only limited Free Copies available.

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Gifts for the Elderly- 5 Things you Should Know and 5 Gifts to Match

by bobcrabtree1 Posted: Monday, 12/21/2009

Buying a gift the elderly, whether it is for your grandparents or your parent is not an easy task. Their age is the one most single important factor to consider, as not all gifts would be suitable.

In this short article I want to highlight 5 things to consider about an elderly person and suggest 5 gifts to match.

History-an elderly person will have many generations of history behind them. In this I am talking about their family name and family history. An excellent gift for an elderly person to discover the history behind their name is Trace you family History Gift Box. This gift as the name implies, will allow them to discover their family tree and the history behind their family name.

There?s no place like home-an elderly person has probably lived in their home and area location for quite some years. An excellent gift suited to this would be Historic Map Gift Box. This gift entitles them to a historic map of the English county of their choice. As well as receiving a magnificent historic map, the recipient of this gift also has the fascinating opportunity to see how their county looked more than a century ago.

Old habits die hard-the good old saying ?old habits die hard? is very much true for an elderly person. With so many wise years behind them and memories, it is no wonder that many elderly people will continue to do things in the way that they have always done. Why not? It has always brought them happiness and why should they not continue to pursue happiness in the time they have left in the world. I therefore would suggest a gift that is specific to your elderly loved one. This of course will vary. If your grandma religiously sits down to enjoy a nice cup of English tea and biscuits at 3pm everyday, then why not buy her a hamper full of her favourite biscuits and tea?

A little goes a long way- as a person gets older, it is fair to say that owning material things becomes less important to them and less of a necessity. Having asked the opinion from many elderly people myself, it is clear that, for an elderly person, having their family with them on their special day (whether it be birthday or Christmas), is the single most important wish they have.

Treasured memories- old age comes hand in hand with many years of memories. Therefore an ideal gift is something that will capture those memories in one place- a photo montage of past and present photographs most certainly would do this.

My Linh Duong writes articles on gifts and gift ideas. For more info on these products visit MyRedPacket UK, a unique gifts and gadget shop with an excellent range of gifts for the elderly

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Autism Causes – Important Things You Wanted To Know

by bobcrabtree1 Posted: Friday, 12/18/2009

Autism is a mental disorder that is a challenge faced by many families the world over; many feel that learning to pinpoint the cause of autism can help lead them towards eliminating the source and preventing autism from occuring and though this is a hope held on to by several scientists, it is not possible to link the cause of autism to a single reason. This is the reason why there is no absolute cure for Autism yet despite extensive medical research.

It is not fair to blame parents of an autistic child to keep the flame of hope alive regarding a cure for the illness that is controllable, but not curable yet and seeking answers that can benefit their child, but the truth is, there is no absolute answer for this predicament just yet.

While Autism is a disorder that has been studied the world over with expert medical professionals evaluating the symptoms and treatment methods to offer best training and control of the condition, its chief cause is yet to be identified, though genetics does play a major role in defining a child suffering from Autism. The best way, in the light of all these facts, is to understand the true nature of Autism, what it means to a child to be autistic and finding ways to make the adjustment of the autistic child to the world around him or her, an easy, happy, normal and fulfilling one.

Educating caregivers of an autistic child about the disorder, equipping them with the knowledge of making others around them aware of the nature and scope of the illness and training them to help their child cope with the possibilities of living with autism are necessary to bringing about a healthy and positive upbringing for the child concerned. Learning about causes of autism is not as important then as is the need to bust any myths regarding Autism, such as poor parenting or neglect or even malnutrition is wrongly believed as being; these are just not true causes of Autism and parents must make an effort to educate themselves about Autism and also others around them.

Scientists are working to establish facts regarding Autism and bring them to light to make more people aware of the true nature of Autism as a brain disorder that has several limitations, but can be overcome to a great extent through timely counselling and therapy, including joining a support group and involving the child affected in interesting and varied programs that are age and skill-level appropriate for them, for many autistic children displaly an uncanny aptitude for math, music or art that should be encouraged.

The brain is larger in autistic individuals and due to this fact, medical experts opine that their nerves and other parts are constructed differently as compared to average individuals; thus, autistic children have an immunity issue as well due to the disorder: at times, autism may have been caused due to impromper vaccinations given to the child’s parents, though this is just a strong possibility and not a definite source of autism. It is still under the scanner.

Thus, as things today stand, the causes for autism are associated with genetics rather than mal-nutrion, bad parenting or vaccinations, which are either myths or have provided inconclusive evidence and it is felt that families need to concentrate on improving the quality of life for the autistic child by being informed about the condition, learning to cope with it in the social context and help enhance the autistic child’s future.

Abhishek has got some great Autism Treatment Secrets up his sleeves! Download his FREE 41 Pages Ebook, “Understanding And Treating Autism” from his website http://www.Health-Whiz.com/555/index.htm . Only limited Free Copies available.

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Caregiver Providing Financial Guidance – 5 Things You Can Observe To Prevent Scams And Rip-Offs!

by bobcrabtree1 Posted: Sunday, 12/13/2009

Very often, the role of a caregiver is a blend of a doctor, maid, advisor and even an amateur detective. Elderly people are gullible and get regularly fleeced by smooth talking sales persons. The elderly are fiercely protective of their finances and how they use them. However, often they make wrong decisions about where to spend their money. Therefore, you as a caregiver have to look after this aspect and see that their limited resources will tide them over as long as possible.

Many senior citizens have become the victims of scams and smooth talking sales persons who sell them a hope and a dream in exchange for their money. These sales persons are constantly calling or emailing old people in the hope of getting a fast buck. If the elders become victims of a scam, it is something they try to hide from their caregivers. You as a caregiver may never know if they have been ripped off, and they will never tell you about it. Hence, you have to assume the role of an amateur detective to find out about such episodes and take steps to rectify the situation as much as possible. There may be some things you can observe to find out if your parents are victims of scams:

? Watch out for your parents’ mail. If they receive large amounts of junk mail with get rich quick schemes, or phony contests, etc., it is possible that they may have become a victim of some scam.
? Spend some time at your parent’s home and answer the phone there. If there are a large number of calls from charities or scam offers, then their names have got passed around to other such scam artists.
? If you see a lot of junk items lying around your parents’ house, then you can be sure that they have been ripped off.
? Begin paying attention to their budget. There may be some problem with the bank account, or too many checks to con artists. Check out the credit card statement as well.
? Check out the ’sent folder’ in the email account to verify any response to scam email schemes.

Your elderly parents are very often defensive of their financial activities and will resent your interference in their affairs. It takes some amount of gentle coaxing and convincing to let you see the documents. Getting involved in bogus contests or get rich quick schemes is addictive and your elderly parents are no exception to this. In spite of losing thousands of dollars to such scams, they will still get cheated by the next crook who manages to convince them, because they are addicted to it. You need to be gentle and understanding to approach the problem and find a solution.

As a caregiver, you must convince your elderly parents to let you handle their finances. You can start by handling their taxes and once they are comfortable with the idea, you can offer to take over the bill payment and manage the checkbook. Later, you can begin gently questioning the expenditure that looks suspicious to you. Do not try to get back any lost money, however, be vigilant enough to prevent any unfamiliar person from getting access to the money. Cancel all the direct debits that are not easily identifiable. Start getting a control over the phone calls, junk mail and emails. In other words, you have to play the role of a guard dog to protect your parents from scam artists and conmen out to fleece them of their money.

Abhishek successfully runs an Old Age Home and he has got some great Eldercare Secrets up his sleeves! Download his FREE 80 Pages Ebook, “How To Take Great Care Of Elders” from his website http://www.Senior-Guides.com/560/index.htm . Only limited Free Copies available.

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